King Charles III Crowned in Historic and Sacred Ceremony at Westminster Abbey
By Boniface Ihiasota, USA
In a historic royal event witnessed by hundreds of high-profile guests inside Westminster Abbey and tens of thousands of well-wishers who braved the rain in central London, Britain’s King Charles III has been crowned.
The coronation service followed a traditional template that has remained unchanged for over 1,000 years.
During the ceremony, the King took the Coronation Oath and became the first monarch to pray aloud at his coronation.
His prayer was a request to “be a blessing” to people “of every faith and conviction.”
The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, the spiritual leader of the Anglican Church, anointed the King with holy oil, which is considered the most sacred part of the ceremony, behind a screen.
The investiture part of the service followed the anointment, during which the King received the coronation regalia, including the royal Robe and Stole.
The most significant part of the coronation ceremony was the crowning of the King with the 360-year-old St. Edward’s Crown. After crowning the King, Welby declared: “God Save the King.”
Wearing the crown, the King was then seated on the throne, and the Archbishop of Canterbury invited the British public, as well as those from “other Realms,” to recite a pledge of allegiance to the new monarch and his “heirs and successors” for the first time.
